St. Paul daily globe., 1887-01-07
INTERSTATE COMMERCE.
A Document On hat Topic by the
MinneapOiis Boa rd Of Grade.

The Minneapolis beard of trade having
had before it for consideration the inter-
state commerce bill, now before congress,
adopted resolution favoring some pro-
visions of the bill and approving the gen.
eral principle of national legislation for the
control and regulation of our interstate car
rying trade, but declared in decided opposi-
tion to the provisions of section 4, relating
to what is known as the long and short
haul. and OF section 5, relating to pooling
arrangements between parallel or competing
railway lines. The board says that if sec
tion is enacted 1t would give to the pro-
posed national commission powers the ex-
erciSe of which would always be dangerous
and might easily become destructive to the
interests OF the distinctly agricultural Sec
tons OF the country. A committee con-
sisting of A. b. Nettleton. Ii. A. Towne.
Edmund j. Phelps and L. B. Walker was
appointed to send the resolutions to the
senators anO representatives in congress
with letter expressing more fully the OBJ
jections of the board of trade.
The objections urged by the committee are
numerous and strong. The term "long and
short haul, the committee says, is vague
and ambiguous, and consequently the inter
probation by the courts would be wholly un-
certain, its practical application doubtful and
there was no doubt about the meaning of the
law the enforcing OF such law would, be-
yond doubt, be gravely in, ,urious to many i'm
portant interests in all parts Of the country
but especially would such enforcement prove
destructive in its effect upon the great apri-
cultural section, of which Minnesota forms
such an Iportant part. 1t would increase
the cost OF heavy commodities OF all kinds
which are brought in from the East. espec-
tally coal, without which the prairie farms
could not be occupied. 1t would depreciate
the value OF every buShel o. wheat and eyery
pound OF beef produced in Minnesota by COM
pelling the railroads TO adopt freight tariff
on through shipments eastward, which, if NOT
prohlbltory, would leave to our farmers no
reward Tor their labor and invested means;
III would ruin manufac turing and deprive
many workingm II of employment: it would
reduce trade in the Northwest by DESTROYING
the purchasing ability of producers; it would
drive large STARE of the long-distauce traf
hc from American to Canadian lines: il
would cripple and probably bankrupt many
railroads by compelling them to relipouisb a
large part of either their through or local
traffic, both of which are essen
tial to their solveucy: the peonle
who ought to derive the most benetit
from legislation of this general character
the farmers and the wage-earners of the
county be the first and greatest suffer-
erS from
ITS INJURIOUS EFFECTS,
AT the best the bill gives to five men. about
whose competency, experience aud integrity
nothing can be known I'm advance, almost
autocratic power over the market value of
hundreds of millions of dollars of railway
stocks and bonds, over the market yalue of
the agricultural products of half a continent
as well as OF the lands upon which the nro.
ducts are grown. So great power and so
great temptation to its abuse, ought not m
be presented unnecessarily to any committee
of citizens he made n
1t would De impossible for any commi ssion to
succeed and adjust the inevitable frictions
and controversies that would do apy good
Section 5, which arbitrarily prohibits the
pooling of railway earnings is not less oh.
jectionable than section 4. 1t proceeds
upon an assumption that an amicable amor.
tonmeht OF traffic among substantialIv rar.
allel railway lines destroys wholesome com
petition, creates 'monopoly,' results in ex-
orbitant transportation charges and thus
wrongs the general body of producers shin
pers and InSumerS, who constitute the neo-
pie. This assumption is u fallacy and leoisIs.
tion based upon it must prove hurtful. The
apportionmentS OF traffic is a natural and nec.
esSa putgroWth ofthe transportation svsteu,
of this country; it is tue best tie railroads
can do and is the only known and feasible al.
ternative for that system OF cut-throat com.
competition which foments chronic "rate
in bankruptcy, first Of the weak lines ana
then OF the strong ones. These adjustments
and division of traffic by pools have the re-
suit of holding rates steadily at the lowest
point at which the business can be done at
living profit. The pooling system directly
Dement'S every business community by giving
some degree of uniformity and stability tC